Hiked up Gothics Via the Cable Route yesterday, and I figured some people here might appreciate some good beta. Basically, it's winter. Lots of slush and mud at low elevations (Consistent snow cover from JBL up) but as we approached the start of the stairs on Ore Bed the snow started to pick up in earnest. The Orebed slide looked very icy, and the stairs were fairly well drifted in. The snow got deeper as we ascended to the col between Gothics and SB, perhaps 3-4 inches at the sign. The 0.6 mile ascent up Gothics was extremely hard fought. It was very icy much of the way up, that coupled with a consistent 30-40mph wind and heavy blinding snow made the ascent very difficult. The iciest spots seemed to be near the top of the 2nd set of cables, though it was icy throughout. The good news (for anyone thinking about the cable route in the near future) is that that steep pitch above the cables was mostly wind scoured and dry, with only a few ribbons and patches of ice. I venture to bet that if my boots/spikes were not wet and caked in snow, walking up the slab would have been perfectly safe (albeit scary!). Anyway, we found a very manageable line up and we were home free, a simple walk the remaining way to the top. On the summit there was probably a 6-7 inches of snow with knee deep drifts. Winds were howling and the visibility was less than great. I think we started down just as the front moved through because the wind and snow really picked up as we started down. Once back to the col, we quickly de-layered a bit and started the long trek back to the Garden.
Notes:
The cable route is quite icy, we ran into several groups that had turned around due to not having traction, and even with traction, much of the route was sketchy. It would be very very difficult to ascend this without traction ... bring spikes.
On the pitch above the cables, beware of snow drifts in the deep crack that separates the slab, the snow hides how deep this rift goes.
Have a blast, it is winter up there and this route is even more awesome with ice and snow, I'm only sad we didn't get much of a view.
Notes:
The cable route is quite icy, we ran into several groups that had turned around due to not having traction, and even with traction, much of the route was sketchy. It would be very very difficult to ascend this without traction ... bring spikes.
On the pitch above the cables, beware of snow drifts in the deep crack that separates the slab, the snow hides how deep this rift goes.
Have a blast, it is winter up there and this route is even more awesome with ice and snow, I'm only sad we didn't get much of a view.
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